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Everett Bradshaw
Engl 2302 7p-8:15p MW
“Rood” Awakening
“The Dream of the Rood” is a poem that gives the cross
that Jesus Christ was crucified upon a personality, which
then proceeds to tell the story of Jesus’ crucifixion
through it’s own ‘eyes’.
The conflicting and merging of
the values of comitatus society and Christian belief are
evident in the cross’ retelling of the tale, as it speaks
of itself as a warrior and then touts the sacrifice of
Christ for the sins of Man.
The ways of old and the new
religion of the times become one in a work that honors both
of the different yet similar societies.
The poem begins with one of the biggest motivators of
comitatus society: treasure.
“...that emblem was entirely
cased in gold; beautiful jewels were strewn around its
foot, just as five studded the cross-beam(p. 126, 6-9).”
Treasure was one of the most important things in the
comitatus circle; with it, the leader kept his thanes loyal
and happy.
bravery.
He gave it for valorous deeds and displays of
The cross bedecked in this kind of treasure helps
the readers of those times see the importance of the
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symbol, even though they are now supposedly Christians.
I
believe that this is a very clever idea on the poet’s
behalf, because both treasure and the Cross can be
considered symbols of the differing beliefs.
Just as the
Cross is the symbol of Christianity, treasure could very
well be the symbol of old comitatus society.
In the
merging of these two symbols by the poet, he can help both
Christian readers and pagan readers see the importance of
the Cross.
The poem continues to merge and contrast the beliefs
of these two societies as Christ is depicted as a warrior
as he climbs upon the Cross: “Then the young warrior, God
Almighty, stripped Himself, firm and unflinching.
He
climbed upon the cross, brave before many, to redeem
mankind(p. 128, 40-42).”
Bravery, another quality prized
by the comitatus society, is displayed by Christ in this
passage.
I see a similarity to Beowulf in the actions of
Christ; he is unflinching and knows what needs to be done.
When Beowulf came to cleanse Heorot, he was unflinching and
knew what needed to be done.
The major difference between
Christ and Beowulf is that while Beowulf boasted, Christ
was humble and silent, something that isn’t seen as a value
to the comitatus society.
And just as Christ climbs upon
the cross, the cross talks of itself as a loyal thane: “I
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quivered when the hero clasped me, yet I dared not bow to
the ground, fall to the earth.
43-45).”
I had to stand firm(p. 128,
As a thane in comitatus society, loyalty was the
best way to repay his lord.
Loyalty was expected in return
for all of the treasures that the king gave.
showed loyalty to his lord at all times.
A good thane
Another aspect of
loyalty was that a thane was to avenge his lord with the
lives of that lord’s killer, something which the cross does
not do: “...when I saw the surface of the earth tremble.
I
could have felled all my foes, yet I stood firm(p. 128, 3739).”
When a lord is felled, it is the job of his thanes
to seek revenge, to take the life or lives of the lord’s
killers, but the cross does not do this, something very
different from the comitatus society.
Another similarity between the comitatus society and the
new Christian society is the burial of the cross.
the end of the poem, the cross is buried.
Towards
But: “They
buried us in a deep pit; but friends and followers of the
Lord found me there and girded me with gold and shimmering
silver.(p. 128, 77-79).”
This is a parallel of a burial
similar to the burial of Scyld Scefing in Beowulf.
In
Beowulf Scyld is buried thusly: “With frost on its
fittings, a lordly longboat | rode in the harbor, ringbowed and ready. | The propped their prince, the gold-
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giver, | in the hollow hull heaped with treasures,(p. 32,
29-32).”
Both the Cross and Scyld Scefing are given the
same treatment a leader in comitatus society is given when
they pass away: their treasure is buried with them.
But
the difference is where the old kings were put in boats and
sent out to sea, the cross is depicted as going to Heaven
to be with God and his angels.
The similarities and differences woven into “The Dream
of the Rood” echo the changing values of a society, but at
the same time, it honors those past values that are now
being replaced.
Even though Christianity was quickly
replacing the pagan culture, these people still remembered
their roots and did not let them fall into the oblivion of
time.
It seems that many of the poems and other writings
from this early era merged the changing belief systems as a
way for these people to cope with the changes and to
educate and relate to those that were slower to change than
others.
I believe that had this not been the case, the
conversion to Christianity would not have been so smooth.
Crushing a people’s beliefs and erasing them is an easy way
to breed hatred and resentment.
Instead, Christianity
adapted their beliefs and stories to a way that these
people could relate to and believe, creating a medium to
educate them and slowly convert them.
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Works Cited
Longman Publishers "The Dream of the Rood" The Longman Anthology. Translated by
Kevin Crossley-Holland. New York, NY: 2003. 126-130.
Longman Publishers "Beowulf" The Longman Anthology. Translated by Alan Sullivan
and Timothy Murphy. New York, NY: 2003. 32-91.